But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

He starts with oneness, and now he is going to diversity. That is what we call unity in diversity. That is diversity that comes from the mind of God.

That we are one in Christ is not for decoration; it is for action. Christ is active in the world through us as His body. The grace is the ability Christ gives, the expression of who he is in the service of others through us in the here and now.

It is an empowering thing. And there is no Christian who is exempt from the grace. Each one has been given grace.

That is what grace means: just as no one can boast about being saved, no one can boast about the operation of the gift, since both are as a result of God’s grace.

Just as no one is more saved than others, no one gains commendation for the size of his gift; we only get commendation for the use of our gift, as it is written: “…what is sought in stewards is that one be found faithful (1 Corinthians 4:2).

In theIn the parable of the talent, the master did not blame the man with one talent for having one talent; it was because he was lazy, and that laziness is wickedness (Matthew 25:24–30).

It can be termed wicked not to use your gift because other people are deprived of the grace of God towards them through you. Our spiritual service is a means of God's grace to those who are recipients of it.

Jesus Christ, the head of the church, is conducting a large operation. He said, “I will build my church (Matthew 16:18).” And just as we recognize that we have been saved, we need to recognize that we have been graced to serve others. And you do not determine your placement in the body, your role; that is determined before you were born.

The saving grace is about what is done to you, meaning the grace to save you; now the second is about the grace to serve others. The first is you receiving from God; the second is you giving to others. You have been helped; now help others. It would have been enough to just be saved; now we are part of God's work on the earth.

So what is the difference between grace and gift? Grace is the quality; gift is the quantity.

Grace is the equalizer; gift is the distinction. So we are still going on with the idea of the mix between what is shared and what is unique, and there is a continued interplay between them. Just as the body is both one and at the same time consists of distinct parts.

Every part of the body has the same DNA, which would be the grace, but the expression- which part of the body it is expressed in and what form that takes differs.

But we must never lose sight of the fact that each person has been given grace; this is what is native to us. And we do not need to look down on other people's grace or its expression (gifting), or think that it must be expressed only in a certain way and in a certain place, trying to limit where your gift should be expressed and under what conditions, and rules.

But there is freedom in the spirit. But we can have Bible verses spliced together with Bible verses and the desire for conformity where the means and ways of gift expression are limited to some set of conditions.

How do you conform the expression of the hand of God on John the Baptist? What protocol do you want him to observe?

I say that to caution against those who put all manner of stumbling blocks before people, saying they must conform to specific dictates to be able to express their gifts. And they forget the words of Jesus that ‘the wind blows wherever it wills… so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit’ (John 3:8 NET).

You can be personally limited in your expression of God's gift under divine direction, but that does not mean that should translate to everyone. You don't have to start a church to express your gift. And you don't have to go through any formal ordination, and I'm not saying there is anything bad in that.

When the disciples say that someone was casting out devils in the name of Jesus who was not part of their group, Jesus said they should not stop him (Mark 9:38–40), meaning you don’t necessarily have to cast aspersions on what other people are doing.

The expression of gift, which is inherently diverse, should not be a way to divide the body. To discern the body may mean recognizing the diversity in the oneness; it may not fit neatly in your box.

The disciples might say, there is enough diversity here with 12. But Jesus said, leave him alone.

Remember how it seems that Paul spoke with a loudspeaker about maintaining the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace before talking about this diversity of gifts?

Therefore, our diversity under God cannot be a basis for division, if what we want is to serve others rather than build a kingdom to ourselves.

We should not forget that there is one body, one faith, one spirit, one hope of our calling, one Lord, one God and Father of us all, one baptism (Ephesians 4:1-6). And that the emphasis on oneness comes before the expression of gift; the call to humility, gentleness and patience comes before it.